-LRB- OPRAH.com -RRB- -- At first glance , Jeanne , Amy , Nikki and Desiree do n't seem to have much in common .

Jeanne is a 31-year-old hotel clerk , and Amy is a 26-year-old working mom . Desiree is an 18-year-old who dreams of becoming an FBI agent , and Nikki is a 26-year-old bartender .

Despite their differences , these women are bonded by the horrors they say they experienced as children . Jeanne , Amy , Desiree and Nikki were all born into the Tony Alamo Christian Ministry , which , some say , is a cult .

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In the 1980s , Alamo , a self-proclaimed prophet of God , had thousands of devoted followers in the United States , including the parents of Jeanne , Amy , Desiree and Nikki . `` When Tony would say that God spoke to him , everyone believed it , '' Jeanne says .

At the height of the ministry 's popularity , many followers lived in compounds , including one in Fouke , Arkansas . Outsiders had no idea what was going on beyond the barred windows , but these four women know all too well .

Ex-followers say that by the late 1990s Alamo was living in this sprawling compound with more than a dozen women , some of whom he called his `` spiritual wives . '' Though no legal documents were ever signed , Jeanne , Amy and Desiree say they were three of Alamo 's `` wives . '' But when they said their vows , they hardly qualified as women -- they were still girls .

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Jeanne says that when she was 15 years old Alamo , who was 59 years old and her pastor at the time , forced her to become his spiritual wife and have sex with him . Amy says Alamo made her say vows and submit to his sexual desires when she was 14 .

Then , Alamo reportedly did something that reportedly shocked even his most devoted followers . Desiree says Alamo made her his youngest spiritual wife when she was just 8 years old . Desiree says Alamo then forced her to have sex with him .

Nikki says she was 15 years old when she realized Alamo planned to make her his next `` wife . '' Nikki escaped the compound and fled before Alamo had the chance to act .

Jeanne , Amy and Desiree say they lived as Alamo 's `` wives '' for years and endured abuse before they were able to leave . They eventually fled the compound and left the church that once ruled their lives .

Then , in July 2009 , these four young women came face-to-face with Alamo once again . This time , in federal court . Despite pressure from family members and friends who still belong to Alamo 's church , they testified against their former leader .

A jury found Alamo guilty of transporting minors across state lines with the intent to have sex , and he 's now serving 175 years in prison .

Alamo 's attorneys are planning to appeal the case .

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Many Americans have never heard of Alamo or his ministry , but Lynn LaRowe , a Texarkana Gazette reporter who 's been covering Alamo 's story for years , says he began making a name for himself in Los Angeles in the late 1960s .

`` Tony Alamo said God appeared before him in his body and told him that he needed to go spread the Lord 's message or that he would surely die , '' Lynn says .

In 1966 , Alamo married Susan Lipowitz and established the Tony and Susan Alamo Christian Foundation . `` Susan Alamo actually operated a television ministry , '' Lynn says . `` Tony Alamo would make cameo appearances as a gospel singer . ''

Their ministry gained thousands of followers and became a huge success . Then , in 1982 , Susan died of cancer . Former members say that 's when Alamo 's dark side was unleashed .

Alamo reportedly put his wife 's dead body in his dining room , and former church members say he made men , women and children pray over her corpse for almost two years . They were told their prayers would raise Susan from the dead , but when it did n't work , a former member says Alamo blamed his faithful followers .

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Over time , Alamo began to exert more control over members of the Tony Alamo Christian Ministry . He turned his church it into a multimillion-dollar business , built on the backs of devoted followers .

`` They spent all of their time either praying or working in some capacity for the ministry , '' Lynn says . `` They were completely physically , if not psychologically , as well , exhausted . So there was no time for independent thinking . ''

Emboldened by his success , Alamo was n't afraid to share his radical views with the world . During a 2008 interview with CNN anchor Rick Sanchez , Alamo ranted against the Catholic Church and argued that the Bible implies that puberty is the age of consent .

`` I do n't know when girls reach puberty . Most of them around 10 , 11 , 12 , 13 , 14 , '' he said during the interview . `` God inseminated Mary at the age of around 10 to 12 . Should we get him for having sex ? ''

Jeanne , Amy , Nikki and Desiree say that when they lived in Alamo 's Arkansas compound , he controlled every facet of his followers ' lives , and threatened violence and eternal damnation if they dared to disobey him . `` He was the one who laid down the rules , '' Desiree says .

Nikki says Alamo decided everything , from who could get a driver 's license to whom a member could marry .

Jeanne , Amy , Desiree and Nikki say that when Alamo set his sights on a young girl in his congregation , her parents could n't say no . In fact , some believed becoming one of his spiritual wives was an honor .

`` My mom had told me the only person I was going to marry was Tony Alamo , '' Amy says .

Once Alamo `` married '' a girl , Jeanne says he used her to fulfill his sexual desires . `` Tony Alamo had up to 13 wives . About , I would say , half were minors , and he had had sex with every single one of us , '' she says . `` He preferred the younger ones . ''

Four days after Alamo exchanged vows with Jeanne , his eighth `` wife , '' she says he made her have sex with him . `` I did believe that God was telling him that I was supposed to have sex with him , that I was supposed to be his wife , that anything he asked of me , I was supposed to do , '' she says .

When Desiree was an 8-year-old little girl who loved playing with dolls , she believed Alamo was a prophet . But , she says , she still felt that what was happening was wrong .

`` I just remember Tony bringing me into his room at one point . He laid me on the bed , said the marriage vows , said ' I do , ' got a wedding ring , and after that , what actually made it final was , instead of a marriage license , you had sex , '' Desiree says . `` I did n't know about sex . I did n't know about any of that . What kept going through my mind was : ` How can this be right ? Is n't this wrong ? ' ''

Despite what she 'd been taught all her life , Nikki says she also felt that Alamo 's manipulation and teachings were wrong . `` I thought , ` If this is heaven and this is what 's going to get me to heaven , I 'm going to have to go to hell , ' '' she says .

Nikki says that in 1999 , after she realized she would become Alamo 's next spiritual wife , she took action . Although Alamo had taught her to fear the outside world , she found the courage inside herself to run .

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One afternoon , Nikki says she fled the compound . She eluded Alamo 's security guards by running through thick brush for hours . `` He sent every person out to look up and down the highways , '' Nikki says . `` They went through every store , every fast food place . ''

After running for miles through the woods , Nikki was exhausted and terrified . Finally , she spotted a house across a field and hurried to the front door . Vince and Karen Coker , strangers who lived in the house , took a leap of faith and invited her to stay the night .

The Cokers offered Nikki a change of clothes , a warm bath and a bed to sleep in . `` I remember laying in the bed . I felt a little bit safe , '' Nikki says . `` I thought , ` Maybe , maybe they will really help me . ' ''

Oprah Show producers reached out to Alamo for a statement , but he never responded .

But Alamo 's church , which is still in business , sent a message . This is part of it , verbatim .

`` Tony Alamo has no secret world or child brides . He is the least secret person in the world . His church and he are open daily to the public , and he is very outspoken , as an open book . Oprah and the government media and the Roman Catholics are in conspiracy against him and his whole church . ''

From The Oprah Winfrey Show © 2010

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Jeanne , Amy and Desiree say they were `` spiritual wives '' of Tony Alamo

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Jeanne was 15 , Amy was 14 , Desiree was 8 when forced to have sex , they say

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Alamo was convicted of taking minors across state lines for sex

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Sentenced to 175 years in prison , he is appealing his 2009 conviction